


The Weight of Duty

by Guardian Of The Lotus (DistantStorm)



Series: Fictober 2019 [14]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Mild Angst, Shadowkeep, oc: Lilith, oc: Miyu, or at least right as it's kicking off, worried friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-15 00:02:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21024431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DistantStorm/pseuds/Guardian%20Of%20The%20Lotus
Summary: Lilith is worried, and seeks someone who will hear her out. Maybe he didn't know what Ikora was doing. It's happened before.Or: A look into duty vs love vs friendship, and all the things that must be balanced in the expanse between them.Written for day 14 of the Fictober 2019 Challenge: "I can't come back."





	The Weight of Duty

Lilith knocks on the door with hard knuckles. Synthweave mesh over plated aluminium carbonite joints that feel as human as flesh and bone. Her bright optics focus on a spot just below the man's eyes, so that if he looks up, he'll be forced to meet her gaze. And, sensing eyes on him, he does.

"Lilith,” Commander Zavala says, as patiently as a man faced with a new offensive can, “I am busy right now. Please-"

"I can't come back," She interrupts, fidgeting, shifting her weight from foot to foot as if she's about to combust. "This is urgent, Commander."

"We have operations to be established on Luna. Unless you've got intel on an assault due to occur in the next forty-eight hours, you'll need to come back."

"Ikora is sending Miyu to the Moon."

Zavala sighs. "We are not authorizing unseasoned Guardians to enter the Hellmouth. I know you would like to accompany her, however-"

Lilith enters the room all the way, pacing with a concerned trudge across the timed floor. She waves her arm as she speaks, repeating his earlier missive. "All Guardians with less than five years experience, or whom were enlisted during the battle of Mare Imbrium, otherwise known as the Great Disaster-"

"Yes, I released that statement."

"But Miyu still gets to go."

"Miyu does not fit into either category," Zavala replies smoothly. "She fought at Burning Lake."

"And the Gr-Mare Imbrium,” She corrects. “Sea of Storms. Anchor's Line." She presses, coming to a stop in front of Zavala's desk. Lilith's verdant eyes narrow. "She told me."

"Miyu can handle herself," He replies, regarding his lover's protégé coolly, but his eyes betray something different. Something like knowledge, like he's not terribly fond of the idea either.

Lilith takes it as a 'go-ahead,' and continues. "Shaxx tried to talk her out of it. I heard them discussing the Sword Logic."

"It is a Hive staple."

Lilith crosses her arms, pacing once more. "How to traverse thro-"

A slender hand falls to the nodes atop Lilith’s head, silencing her mid-sentence. The newcomer had been dead silent, their footfalls without sound or vibration.

"Alright, Lillie," Miyu chimes, her fingers warm as they pull back. "Enough."

"I'm just worried. You said-"

"I did, but this is not your place," Miyu fixes her with an intense stare. Gone are the intricate kimono-like robes she usually wears about the Tower, replaced with dark, heavy armor. The only pop of color is the red cording on her bond, a gift from the man behind the desk. "I know you are worried, but I have handled this before. Zavala and I have discussed this. I appreciate your concern but I will be fine."

Confidence is becoming on the elder Warlock, for once compelling her student into silence. "Ittekimasu," Miyu addresses the Commander. Her eyes are soft, but the rest of her is serious. Poised and ready.

His eyes find hers like magnets. "Itterashai, Miyu."

The Warlock nods, her Ghost fluttering protectively at her shoulder. She puts a hand on Lilith's shoulder in turn. "I will be fine, Lillie."

It isn't Lilith who answers, but Zavala. His voice sounds tight. "Be careful. Please."

She turns to him, smiling gently. "Tamashii and Adelaide synced this morning. You'll get our beacon every five minutes to your holopad. I'll see you in a few days." She squeezes Lilith's shoulder affectionately.

"Ascendent throne worlds aren't my favorite idea," Zavala intones quietly after his partner leaves, just soft enough for Lilith's delicate sensors to pick up. He does not look up from his desk again, studying something on the scroll before him with such an intensity that it cannot actually be something physical that has his focus. "But she understands I cannot come for her if things go poorly because of my duties here." Now his heavy azure gaze falls on her. "I am not proud of that, Lilith."

"I would go."

"I know, but Luna is not like anything you’ve faced before. It makes what happened to you on Titan look like a mockery." Lilith flinches, as Zavala - and Miyu, he's sure - expected her to. She's still so young, and her recent experiences are very raw. "Neither of us could live with putting you through that.”

Lilith grits her fists. “Even so.”

“For now, all we can do is hope that this threat can be contained. That we can manage a foothold on the Lunar surface.”

“Can I help?” She asks.

Zavala sighs. “See if Ikora needs you for anything. If she does not, I am sure I’ll think of something.”


End file.
